Picture Perfect

There is no such thing as a PICTURE PERFECT MARRIAGE
but MARRIAGE is the PERFECT PICTURE of God's love.

Long gone are the fairy tale fantasies of a Picture Perfect Marriage. Those unrealistic expectations have long been replaced with the cold hard facts of reality. What is the reality? That marriage is hard. Marriage takes work. Marriage is not perfect. The reality is that two imperfect people are in a relationship trying to create a perfect marriage, and that just can’t happen. There is no such thing as a perfect marriage or a perfect relationship. But it doesn’t mean that marriages can’t be good. Marriages can’t live perfectly every after, but they can live happily ever after. You see, even if you can never achieve perfections, you can hold on to the hope and the truths in the Word of God. Through His Words, we see that God is for marriage. He ordained the sanctity of marriage. We can rejoice and be inspired, challenged, and encouraged knowing that marriage is a Perfect Picture of God’s love toward us. 

God loved us such much that He willingly gave His only begotten Son for us. In this short passage from the famous verse, John 3:16, we see several different ways that we can choose to apply God’s love into our own relationships.

God chose to LOVE us.
God chose to SACRIFICE for us.
God chose to GIVE to us. 
God chose to see the GOOD in us.
God chose to ADORE us.
God chose to NURTURE a relationship with us. 
God CHOSE us.
God chose to STAY with us. 
God chose to be DEVOTED to us.
God chose to FORGIVE us.
God chose to INVEST in us.

How can we apply these attributes into our own marriage?

We can choose to LOVE our spouse.
We can choose to SACRIFICE for our spouse.
We can choose to GIVE to our spouse.
We can choose to see the GOOD in our spouse.
We can choose to ADORE our spouse.
We can choose to NURTURE a relationship with our spouse.

We can CHOOSE our spouse.
We can choose to STAY with our spouse. 
We can choose to be DEVOTED to our spouse.
We can choose to FORGIVE our spouse.
We can choose to INVEST in our spouse.

WE CAN CHOOSE.
It is our choice.
IT. IS .THAT.SIMPLE.
We each have a choice to make.

You can choose to love your spouse like Christ loves you.
You can choose to stay rather than leave.
You can choose to forgive rather than fight.
You can choose to invest rather than ignore.
You can choose to focus on your marriage rather than be distracted from your marriage. 
You can choose to uplift rather than criticize.
You can choose to have peace rather than always be right.
You can choose to respect rather than rebel.
You can choose to take the road less traveled rather than take the easy way out. 
You can choose joy rather than turmoil. 
You can choose to give rather than get.
You can choose to love. 

Don’t try to have a Picture Perfect Marriage, just choose to lean on and learn from the One who can show us what Perfect Love truly looks like. Love is not a feeling. Love is not a fairy tale. Love is not a Hallmark movie. Love is an action. Love is a choice. 

I Corinthians 13: says that Love suffereth long, is kind, envieth not, vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil, rejoiceth not in iniquity, rejoiceth in truth, beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. 
LOVE NEVER FAILS

Today you have a choice. What will your choice be?

Remember, 
There is no such thing as a PICTURE PERFECT MARRIAGE
but MARRIAGE is the PERFECT PICTURE of God's love.

Wait on the Lord

            In this fast pace, always on the go society we have become spoiled and accustomed to quick, immediate results. We drive up to a fast food restaurant and in about 10 minutes or less, we have our dinner handed to us. We pop a meal in the microwave and it is cooked and ready to serve in around 5 minutes. We send someone a text message or a message through instant messager and have a response back within seconds. We have direct deposit so our money is immedialty available and we no longer have to wait for checks to clear. Wal-mart now offers on-line shopping and easy grocery pick-up. This allows us to no longer stand in line!  Amazon has anything and everything we need, right at our fingertips and promises next day shipping. We no longer have to wait for weeks to get our packages delivered. Modern technology has paved the road to make life easier and less complicated. We do not have to wait on anything and now we no longer know how to.

            Watch how ridiculous people began to act when they have to stand in line and wait. Whether it’s at the grocery store, restaurant, or at the bank people get fidgety and began to gripe and complain. If someone doesn’t answer your text message immedialty you don’t know how to cope. You check your phone 20 times a minute thinking there must be something wrong with your phone. Road rage becomes an issue when people get stuck in traffic jams. They never think about the victims that could possibly be involved in an accident, they only think of the frustration, complications, and delays it is causing them. Has this modern technology truly made life easier for us or has it simply spoiled us and warped our way of thinking.

            You see, for many of us, we have become so accustomed to this fast pace lifestyle that we have allowed this way of thinking to spill over into every area of our lives. Our careers, our dreams and goals, our health, and our homes began to suffer because we want quick fixes, fast results, and easy solutions. We are no longer willing to put in the work hard necessary and wait for the end results. Unfortunately, many of us have even taken this approach in our relationship with God. We want our prayer life to offer quick fixes, fast results, and easy solutions. We demand our prayers to be answered in the time frame we desire and according to how we deem best. We want our way, and we want it now. So when God doesn’t deliver when and how we wanted Him to, we get upset. We don’t know how to deal. We think He has abandoned us. We feel unloved, and unheard.

            My dear friend, we must remember God does not live in a fast pace, always on the go society. He does not operate like Amazon and deliver pretty packages the very next day. He is not a microwave. We can’t just push a button and have things the way we wanted within 5 minutes. His way of thinking is so different than ours. He does not work in the same time frame that we do. Often we must wait. WAIT? Yes, wait!

Psalms 27:14

Wait on the Lord; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say on the Lord.

The Psalmist said to WAIT on the Lord!

Pay attention to that dreaded four letter word he choose to use, WAIT.

He did not say to:

RUSH the Lord

DEMAND the Lord

DOUBT the Lord

Get FRUSTRATED at the Lord

Get AHEAD of the Lord

GIVE UP on the Lord

He simply said,WAIT on the Lord.

            I get it, it’s hard. We don’t like to wait. It’s not fun. But in this life and in our Christian walk, there will be times when we will have to wait solely on the Lord. Maybe it’s your career, a calling, a dream, or a goal that has you on your knees. Perhaps it’s your marriage, your children, or your home. It might be a diet, your health, or a heartbreak. Whatever it might be, when you are going before the King of King praying and asking for His mercy and grace, His blessings and wisdom, His power and His will in the matter, WAIT on Him. He never promised fast results, quick fixes, and easy solutions. But He did promise to lever leave you or forsake you. God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Just because our way of thinking and our lifestyle has change, doesn’t mean God has. His ways have not changed, neither has His love for you changed. Don’t allow our modern way of living and thinking to destroy our relationship with God. Just because He doesn’t deliver how and when we expected Him to, doesn’t mean He is not a good Father. Don’t let our fast moving world influence your prayer life or your trust in Him.

Learn to WAIT. Even when it’s hard. WAIT.

Isaiah 40:31

But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

Time to Grow Up

There is nothing sweeter and more precious in this sin cursed world than a newborn baby. They are tiny, innocent, and totally dependent on others. Not only is it expected for a baby to cry, whine, throw fits, be needy, and fussy; it’s totally acceptable. They are growing and learning their place in this strange and confusing world.  It’s amazing how we don’t seems to mind the spit-up in our hair, the crazy amounts of stinky diapers, the messes, the never ending pile of dirty little clothes, and the lack of sleep that comes with a darling baby. However, none of this would be expected or accepted if that darling was now 20. 

Ummm, nope!

And why is that?

Well, because that big darling, that is now 20 is not a helpless, needy, tiny, innocent, totally dependent little baby anymore. That 20 year old darling should have grown up and become an educated, self- sufficient, independent part of society. That big baby should be well on it's way to adulthood and should be trying to find their own place in this strange and confusing world. And if they have not, there is a big problem!!!

Sweet sisters, it is exactly the same as Christians. The Bible describes a new believer as a new born babe. Just like a new born baby needs milk and needs time to grow, so does a new Christian. It’s expected and accepted for a baby to drink milk and it's expected and accepted for a new Christian to be a baby Christian. New Christians need time to grow, time to mature, time to take those first steps and time to learn. 

I Peter 2:2

“As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby:”

As a new Christian, there is an eagerness about learning the Word of God. Do you remember what it was like? There was an earnest desire to hold on to every truth you come across and cling to every promise you found in the Bible. You would cling to it and apply it to your life, and you diligently allowed those truths to fill in all those empty places you desperately needed to be filled. You may not have even understood what was happening, you just knew you craved the Word of God. Just like a little baby craves its milk with demanding cries, we would embrace the milk of the word as we sucked it down happily.

However, during the growth process, there will be times a new Christian does not understand a truth, a conviction, or a standard. They may get whiny, fussy, and throw a fit. They may cause a stink or a mess but that is expected from a baby. It's all part of the process. 

This growing process  is not always easy and requires patience. This baby Christian is finding its place in a new strange and confusing world. They need to be taught, loved, and babied at times. They need time and patience to grow in grace and grow in knowledge.

But a seasoned Christian should not live as a baby Christian. There should be a huge difference in their lives. Yes, we should still be growing, and still be learning. But we should not be crying for the bottle anymore.

 Hebrews 5:12-14

“For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and no of strong meat. For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe, But strong meat belongeth to them thas are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil”

An adult can’t live on milk alone, neither should a seasoned Christian live on the milk of the word. Just as an adult needs substance, a seasoned Christian needs the meat of the word. He needs to be grounded in the Doctrine of the Word. He should be skilled in the teachings of God, and should be mature in his faith and knowledge in the Word.

II Peter 3:18

“But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.”

So dear buddies in Christ, you should constantly be growing. If you are the same Christian you were 5,10, 15 years ago, then it’s time to grow up. You should not be complacent, stagnant, or stationary; you should always be moving and growing in the Lord. You should not get offended over every little thing that does not go your way. You should not be throwing temper tantrums or hissy fits like a toddler. You should be grounded, secure, and mature in your faith. 

 So today, let’s take a good look into the mirror and ask ourselves if we are still acting like  baby Christians, or are we growing in the Lord and maturing in His Word. Let’s grow up and go do great things for God.

Casting All our Cares upon Him

While we were living in Kansas City, my son and I would take advantage of going to the library every week. We would stack up on books and movies. And every week we would return the old books and movies and switch them for new ones. We enjoyed this routine very much. It was on one of these regularly scheduled library trips, that the librarian noticed one of the DVD’s was missing from its case. “Oh, I’m so sorry; I must have left it in the DVD player!” The movie was not due back yet, so she handed me the case to take back home and return it once we had the DVD. Not putting too much thought into it we went on throughout the library finding new treasures for our week. In fact, I didn’t think much about it until we were home and I checked the DVD player to find it empty.

“Well, that’s not good.” I thought to myself but still not completely worried. I began to look anywhere I might have absent "mindedly" set a DVD, all the obvious places like the DVD player, beside the TV, on the mantel, in my DVD cabinet. But I was coming up empty. This was so out of character for me. I am a very routine person and my normal routine is to put a DVD straight into its case. Then I got to thinking. What if I wasn’t the one who misplaced the DVD. “Oh Uh” I said out loud as I looked at my very mischievous 3 year old. “Did you take the DVD out of its case?”  The smile on his face and the look in his eyes gave him away. “I think I did, I get it” He turned and ran away. “Well this should be interesting” I thought. “Hopefully, it’s still in one piece.” 

When several minutes had passed and neither my son nor the DVD had returned, I went looking for them. And to no surprise there he was sitting on the floor playing with a freshly dumped pile of toys. “Where is the DVD?” I asked him. “I dunno” he replied without looking up. “Go figure” I said to myself as I began searching his room. I searched everywhere in his room and came up empty handed, so then I began to search the house. Ya’ll I checked every drawer, every cabinet, under every bed, in the closets, toy boxes, everywhere. And I continued to search for weeks. We were coming to the time when the DVD was due back at the library, I did not want to pay any late fees and I didn’t want to have to buy that silly DVD, so I continued to search but with no luck.

It was now the day before we would be going to the library, and I was talking to my husband about it. He began to help me search and I had a striking thought hit me that I had not asked God to help me find the DVD. He knew exactly where it had been hidden and I had not thought to ask him to join this search party. So, I began to pray. I asked God to help me find it. I also asked Him to forgive me for not doing this in the first place.  

I remembered the verse about seek and ye shall find. Well ya’ll I had “seeked”, and I had “seeked” for it everywhere. So, now I was clinging to the other part of that verse, the promise part about "finding". My husband had just walked back into the room where I was looking and my eyes drifted to his direction when all of a sudden something shiny caught my eye. “What is that?” I wondered to myself. A silver shimmer in the heater vent which was mounted on the bottom of the wall . I walked over to the wall and my husband followed me. “What is that?” I asked him as he knelt down, put his fingers in the vent and pulled out a shiny DVD. We eagerly checked the title and confirmed it was the missing DVD!!! Yes, in the heater vent and yes, put there by my mischievous 3 year old. But ya’ll in that moment I learned a valuable lesson and not about the hiding places a 3 year old can come up with but on the love of God. In that moment, I was reminded that no matter how small our request is; God cares. He cares for our concerns, He cares for our problems, He cares for our heartbreak and He cares about what is important to us. He cares and He cares deeply. He allowed a shiny missing DVD to remind me of the amount of devotion and adoration He has for me. What is He using in your life to show you His love and fondness? Sometimes He shows us in the smallest ways, like a shiny DVD.

There is no request too small, too unimportant, too big or too hard for God. He wants us to come to Him for everything. Today, let’s go to Him first, not last, and let’s cast our cares upon Him and leave those burdens down at His feet Let’s live righteously in our prayer life and truly learn to trust Him with our hearts, hurts, burdens and even our concerns.

I Peter 5:7 “Casting all your cares upon Him for He careth for you.”